


Gentle Abyss

by Mellize



Category: Maoujou de Oyasumi
Genre: Angry Syalis, Best Boy Leo, Blushing Leo, Caring Leo, Caring Syalis, Character Study, Clingy Leo, Demon Priest, Demons, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Evil Scissors Princess, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Future Fic, Harmless Villain, Idiots in Love, Introspection, Post-Battle, Prayer, Protective Syalis, Protectiveness, RPG elements, Serious Injuries, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Working Out My Feelings Through Fic, body aches, kidnapped princess, あくスヤ
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-24
Updated: 2020-12-24
Packaged: 2021-03-11 04:21:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,805
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28289097
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mellize/pseuds/Mellize
Summary: A story set on the future timeline of Demon Cleric being heavily injured and is in the losing side against his battle with the Hero, but a kidnapped Princess arrives at the scene and isn't happy with such an outcome.
Relationships: Demon Cleric/Princess Syalis, Leonard/Aurora Sya Lis Goodereste
Comments: 18
Kudos: 108





	Gentle Abyss

**Author's Note:**

> Warning: This story contains spoilers if you haven't read the manga of Maoujou de Oyasumi yet.

As the battle against the Hero and his party persisted, the area boss of the Demon Church known as the Demon Cleric or rather, Leonard was left to struggle on the losing side. 

He panted heavily to catch his breath and considered any advantages he had against the Hero, but it seemed futile for him to have thought so.

He barely had any talismans and potions left at his disposal…

The gnawing pain that pestered his back and waist from forcing himself earlier into close combat…

And the amount of his MP was no more than the capacity of summoning some D-ranked spirits for support…

The barrier he conjured was his only form of protection, buying him some time to regain enough strength to fight the Hero and his party once more.

Fight, retreat, and repeat; such was the process of his battle against the Hero. Why was he struggling against such odds when he was completely aware of them?

If it were like any day where he regarded this battle just the same he did with his obligations in Demon Castle, he would call it a day and surrender himself willingly to be slain by the Hero.

After all, that was an expected outcome from all the fables written and sang by the humans.

However, things had changed and that type of thinking was far past him.

Especially when the aftermath of this fight involved the Princess. 

“Ah,” Leonard chuckled to himself, finally realizing the reason behind a stubbornness that was quite so unlike him. “So, it’s because of the Princess…”

_Crack._

Snapping out of his thoughts, he raised his head at the sound and saw the state of his barrier; its defenses were waning. A sigh escaped his lips in dismay at its disintegrating condition, it won’t be long until it shattered completely from the pressure of their attacks.

Whipping out two talismans from his pocket, Leonard drew out a shaky breath and positioned himself into a fighting stance. Once his barrier collapsed, he’ll have to launch an offense to cancel out their attacks.

And yet, as he braced himself for the inevitable, a passing thought slipped into his head.

He wanted to see the Princess one last time because he knew the moment he had awoken and risen from his revival…

She would no longer be in Demon Castle despite her refusal to return to the Kingdom of Goodereste with the Hero and his party.

The mere thought of it made his heart ache with woe and regret.

‘For one last time,’ Leonard pleaded to the evil god in his thoughts, ‘please. I want to see her.’ However, he knew it was not enough to just pray and believe idly. He had to take matters into his own hands as well.

Perhaps then they may have the heart to grant this selfish wish of his.

There was no other choice for him but to fight till the bitter end, even if his chances of winning were slim. And if he did lose this battle, he’ll do whatever it would take to see her one last time even if it meant dragging this battered body to her room before resigning himself to his fate.

If he could do just that, it will be more than enough for him.

“Prepare to meet your doom, demon!”

In response to the Hero’s war cry, Leonard staved off his wistful musings and sprang back into action. He tightened his hold on his talismans, ready to activate them– 

But the Hero’s special move never came. And instead, inside an explosion of mist surfaced silvery tresses that flowed along with the breeze and obscured his vision of the battlefield. 

“Leo,” and there came a familiar voice calling out to him so tenderly. Then, her head shifted to his direction, showing him those purple pearl-like orbs with a pair of twinkling stars that denoted her status as royalty.

And those very same eyes belonged to the person he yearned to see.

‘To think my wish would even be granted,’ his breath caught in his throat, hardly believing the sight before him.

“Leo,” she called out his name again, but this time a slightly strained tone interlaced with her calling, “who did this to you?”

He stared right back at her, albeit flurriedly. He was more taken aback by the dark aura suddenly surrounding her rather than her question.

Still unsure of his response to her, Leonard slightly tilted his head down, hoping to catch a glimpse of her visage. But she lowered her head just as quickly, her forelocks completely masking her expression as if the Princess wanted to hide something from him.

_Snap. Snap. Snap._

Those sharp noises drew his attention to her hands that latched itself on a giant pair of scissors. As the Princess slowly stretched her arms out to widen the gap between each blade of her weapon, his focus drifted further on the fumes emitting faintly from those same blades.

Ah, the Princess must have used her scissors to deflect the Hero’s attack. As expected of her, only she was capable of such a feat.

‘Wait, now’s not the time to be impressed!’ Leonard shook his head furiously, returning his attention to the situation at hand.

“P–Princess, it’s not safe here! There’s still time until the mist clears up, so you must leave this place now.” Despite his fretting, neither a response nor a reaction came from her. 

And instead, she turned her back on him. Once her weapon was pivoted upward, the Princess kept swinging her arms back and forth, letting the giant pair of scissors to open its metallic jaws wide and snap shut repeatedly. The more force and speed she inserted into her instrument the paler his complexion had become.

‘Don’t tell me she’s going to…’ 

With a sense of dread sliding through him, Leonard watched as her sharp gaze was locked on the opposing party, specifically toward a blonde-haired man who observed the Princess with unrelenting focus.

But when the mist, initially created from the remnants of the Hero’s ultimate attack, finally cleared up, the Hero loosen his guard upon recognizing her. 

“Princess, you’re safe!” said the grinning Hero with his arms flailing around, completely unaware of the killing intent she felt towards him, the Hero.

“The one who hurt Leo is… _that man_. This is unforgivable,” her muttering those very words were not a good sign at all! He had to do something!

“U–Um, Princess. I’m fine, really! Apart from some grazes and paper cuts, I’m all well and dandy,” despite the twinging pain still apparent in his back and waist, Leonard held back a whine and stood upright as a means to convince her out of her impending rampage. 

One good look at him and the Princess turned away again, clicking her tongue in disapproval, “Leo’s a terrible liar.” 

He flinched, all tongue-tied at being seen through so easily by her. Not only did his attempts to calm her down failed miserably, but it also seemed to have provoked her further with the way she now viciously whirled her weapon around. At this rate, irreversible damages were bound to happen!

“Princess, we’ve come to rescue you! You’re in good hands now!” declared the Hero who began to approach the infuriated Princess, much to his dismay.

‘Not good. If he comes any closer, the Princess will…she will…’ 

This turn of events unfolded before him in motion as if a series of cogs twisting and turning for time to come forward; the Princess with her mighty scissors ready to go in for the kill, the clueless Hero who trotted merrily toward the Princess with open arms, the Hero’s party being a crowd of outsiders to this scenario, and…

He who stood frozen in place in the midst of it all.

He had to move, he had to do something, he just had to…

It was not because he cared about the balance and order of the battle between the heroes and demons that had already fallen apart, rather he feared that if he did nothing to stop this…

Misfortune would surely befall her; he couldn’t stomach the notion of the Princess facing disdain and condemnation from her own people, all because of some lowlife demon like him.

And to him, there was nothing more important than her happiness and wellbeing.

‘I’m sorry, Princess. I can’t allow for such a thing to happen…’

Even if that meant saving the life of the man who was the object of his envy and loathing.

Like a graceful swan, the Princess took a step forward, then another one, and another one…

The second her feet left the floor to pounce on her target, the talismans slipped away from his grasp as he charged forward and extended his arms out to clasp them around her waist. Leonard gritted his teeth with resolute as his sore pair of arms held her back with whatever strength he had left.

He heard a crack or two in his hips, but he paid no attention to it and poured all his remaining strength into his arms to prevent her from escaping.

Frustrated, the Princess shot him a glare. “Let go,” she growled at him, struggling against his grip. But to his surprise, the force she had put into her struggling was strangely less than usual. Perhaps, despite her outrage, she still had the mind to consider his body aches and injuries.

Then, he could use this to his advantage.

“If you don’t perish that thought, I won’t let go!” he retorted back at her, infuriating her more in the process.

As their struggle against each other went on, the Hero, who was initially bewildered at the sight before him, snapped out of his daze and marched on with his sword. “You vile demon, unhand the Princess at once!” he shouted with pure hostility, but neither parties spared him any attention. 

“HYYYYAAAA!!”

It was only then he noticed the Hero when his bothersome yelling got louder as he charged toward them. Correction: blindly charging toward them without any means of stopping and plotting his next move. Even though he was still occupied in holding back the Princess, Leonard could barely contain a scowl from emerging into his face.

The Hero was blatantly displaying a poor conduct of being…well, a hero; the foolish man didn’t stop to think that if he, the Demon Cleric himself, were like any of the demons from Devil’s Bridge City, his old hometown, then he would not hesitate to use the Princess as a shield to avoid himself from sustaining any more damages.

But of course, he would never put the Princess in harm’s way.

Not in a million years. 

Such a thing was unthinkable for him to do, so perish that thought.

As much as he felt the desire to continue criticizing the Hero and his improbable acts, he was still trapped in an unfavorable situation without much aid; the Princess was persistently trying to wriggle out of his grasp and still in a fit of rage, the Hero was still rushing forward, and the Hero’s party merely stood in the sidelines without a care in the world.

A swarm of pangs that crawled all over his back was not much of a help either; his back was seriously killing him!

Leonard bit his lower lip in contemplation, trying to find several ways out of this situation. ‘If he manages to land a blow on me, I’ll end up losing my grip on the Princess. As a result, she will most certainly…’

No point. He was left with no other choice but to withdraw from the battlefield. 

The Demon King and the others might suddenly be burdened with more work due to his absence, but it was his only option. He couldn’t risk the Princess getting hurt, be it physically or mentally.

Chanting a teleportation spell under his breath, he held onto the Princess more firmly and hoped for the spell to activate sooner before the Hero got any closer to them.

“No! I won’t let you get away with the Princess, demon!”

Before a blazing light broke through the ground and enveloped their nearby surroundings, what he last saw before he and the Princess departed from the Demon Church was a faint image of the Hero; one that made him wish he had averted his sights away. But instead, the pit of his stomach twisted with repulsion just from witnessing it. 

The Hero was…

Desperately reaching out to the Princess with a tearful look on his face.

[How dare he when the Hero himself was previously a constant torment in the Princess’s life…] 

***

Leonard heaved out a sigh of relief once they had safely teleported to an area close to the evacuation camp where it sheltered all the low-ranked demons and those who were not designated to battle the heroes in the Demon Castle.

He should be at ease now that they were in a safe zone, but…

The Hero’s face still burned in his mind, his fingers trembled and clawed deep into dirt as if trying to relieve itself of such a disgusting memory. 

‘Wait, the Princess!’ all negative thoughts were suddenly thrown aside and Leonard, despite the aching still persisting in his worn-out body, lifted his head to check on her. 

There she was not far from the ground where his knees fell on… standing so motionlessly with her head bowed down.

Even her scissors that she clutched on so tightly during her struggling was left forgotten on the ground.

His heart sank at the look of such emotions unknown to him that had clouded her face. He wanted to comfort her but refrained himself from doing so– he forbade himself in letting her earlier actions pass like it never happened.

He had to harden his will in order to talk some sense into her. “Princess, what you did back there was reckless and dangerous–”

She interrupted his scolding, “but Leo is hurt.” 

‘And there goes my will, all gone and neglected...’

He was left speechless as he stared at her, blinking blankly once he heard her words, but more importantly, that tone she used… 

It was the same one from back when his hand got cursed, even though her reaction right now was far more severe than that time.

Slightly strained and softer compared to her normal flat tone. It was so different and out of the ordinary that he immediately caught on to it and was stuck in his memory lane like a sore thumb since then… 

Why was she, once again, acting like this toward him? He couldn’t really understand it.

She was never like this to the others.

Never to everyone else but him…

Could it be that–

‘No, no! Stop it, me! I can’t mistake her concern for something else!’ Leonard asserted, refusing for his delusions to run wild and overwhelm his thoughts.

Once he managed to get ahold of himself, he tried looking at her once more, but… 

But there it was again, she hid her face from him just like from earlier. For someone who was always so daring and self-driven by sleep itself, this ‘side’ of her made him squirm with discomfort.

‘For her to be this badly affected just because of my injuries,’ he was unsure of what to think as his emotions clashed against one another, messing up his thought process even more.

But there was one thing he was sure of; he hated seeing her like this.

Slowly crawling his way to her, he felt the need to comfort her. Just as he was thinking over the right words to say, he cast his eyes down by mistake, but it was a good thing he did so.

Leonard could see her hands quivering slightly, pricking his worried heart at the sight of it.

Consumed by his desire to console her, Leonard wiped away the bits of blood and dirt from his hand before lifting it to soothingly pat hers, but hesitated when his fingers were inches away from hers. He became conscious of what he was about to do that a sudden shyness rushed through him from the mere thought of touching the Princess’s slender and soft hand.

It made things worse for him when he recalled hugging her waist earlier in his efforts of stopping her; the faint scent of flowers and sweets emanating from his sleeves had entered his nostrils… 

And the reminder of it colored his cheeks and ears into a deep, bright red. 

Leonard could hardly breathe with his heart beating like crazy from indecent thoughts infiltrating his head.

‘N–No, the Princess needs me,’ and yet, despite his bashfulness overwhelming his entire being, Leonard urged himself to reach out his hand and patted hers in comfort, albeit too timidly for his own liking. 

“P–Princess,” he started by calling the Princess out of her self-reflection, with a smile awkwardly making its way into his face, “it’s not as serious as you think. All I need is some quick heals and plenty of rest. I’ll be in top shape before you know it.”

“Then,” he watched with relief as glitters of light returned to those lovely pair of pearl-like orbs once she looked over to his side, “let’s get going.”

Ah, there it was. The smile he so adored.

“Yes, let’s,” sensing that the Princess was feeling better, Leonard started to pull his hand away, but once again, he was taken by surprise when her fingers stretched out and quickly clasped it around his hand, refusing to let go of it. 

“Eh?”

“Hmph. Leo lied again,” she said so with a pout. 

“…What does the Princess mean?”

“It looks like Leo needs immediate care,” the Princess declared and continued on, pointing out the oddities that she noticed from him, “you look feverish and your tail’s all too twitchy!” 

“A–Ah…”

“Let’s hurry, it could be serious!” with a sense of urgency kicking in, the Princess mustered the strength into pulling him off the ground with her other free hand, urging him to get on his feet. 

“Yes, yes,” without much resistance, he stood up and began to follow her lead. 

Their way back to the evacuation camp was a quiet one. No words were exchanged for the longest time, but the silence surrounding them was a comfortable one; the Princess was focused in guiding him and he was left to his own thoughts.

Despite her initial words of urgency, she walked unhurriedly, matching her pace with his wobbly ones as if she were being mindful in not making their walk an unpleasant one for him.

Her consideration for his current condition was rather flattering and he would have continued praising her so if not for the fact that he was conscious of their hands being joined together.

Every time he stole a glance at their intertwined hands, it sent butterflies in his stomach and turned his pounding heart into such a disarray; he feared all these overly sensitive responses already made his palm too sweaty and sticky. And in an attempt to flee from such an embarrassment, Leonard tried slipping his hand out of her hand multiple times. But to no avail, the Princess would tighten her hold on his hand each and every time, eventually forcing him to give up. 

As he remained a blushing mess in their leisure walking, she spoke out of the blue. “Next time you’re tasked to battle someone, you have to take me with you,” she said it with finality, allowing no room for objections. 

Because he knew her too well, he ended up complying to her request, “I understand.” Although he found it odd, she would never say anything beforehand and just do whatever she wanted, whether they agreed to her demands or not.

Perhaps his battle with the Hero still had her worried. But this was no good at all, he’ll have to report this to the Demon King and hoped they’d come up with an alternative solution to this. 

Even if the Princess herself possessed great strength, speed, and agility, he dreaded the idea of seeing her hurt, even a single scratch on her would send him into a panic frenzy.

‘But then again, her being the Princess…she’ll make it so that everything will go her way,’ seriously, this princess worried him so much to no end.

And even though she often brought him so many troubles, she was still the girl– no, woman he so dearly love– 

_Thump. Thump. Thump._

Ah, no good. All that happened today was affecting him badly.

Originally, he was merely content with just seeing her one last time before his death but because of…

Her expressions, words, and gestures today… all of it…

His greed was growing; he wanted more and more from her.

And earlier, he vowed to himself in letting go of her and move on, but now…

It was already impossible; there was no way he could muster the will and attempt the same thing. 

Before he knew it, his hand that loosely intertwined with her hand was now holding onto her just as tightly. 

As if Leonard had nowhere to turn to with his thoughts and feelings all muddled up, he pleaded to the evil god once more, ‘oh, All-Knowing and Ferocious One, heed to this follower’s desire: this humble one wishes to…remain by the Princess’s side for as long as she– no, we live.’

And the moment he implored those wishes, it brought him peace and clarity.

***

(Bonus)

As Twilight and Great examined the ruins of the Demon Church, the area showed no signs of life. Even the corpse of their fallen ally, the Demon Cleric, was nowhere to be found.

Instead, a talisman and strands of silver hair rested on the palm of his hand, Twilight shut his eyes tight for a short while before reopening them and shifting his attention to his subordinate, “Great. I’m sorry that I ask this of you when you’re still recuperating, but I need you to track down the whereabouts of Demon Cleric and the Princess.”

“Understood.” The latter, not minding his current condition one bit, received the pieces of evidence and nodded obligingly before disappearing into the shadows.

Left all alone, Twilight let out a sigh. ‘I hope they made it out alive and well,’ he thought as he felt his chest swell up with unfathomable worry.

After all, the great battle between the humans and demons was far from over.

* * *

(Another extra bonus)

Dawner: Princess, I’ll definitely save you!!

Kisho: Was it just me or…

Sunrise: If it’s the time from earlier where an area boss is actually holding back the Princess from murdering a certain idiot, then you’re not alone.

Kisho: Figures…


End file.
